Photo courtesy of Bangor (Maine) Daily News
Flames leap from the fire that destroyed the office of the Lincoln (Maine) News Nov. 5.
Lincoln (Maine) News meets next press start despite fire

The Lincoln (Maine) News made it to press Nov. 12, fulfilling Publisher Kevin Tenggren’s hope that the newspaper would not miss its weekly Thursday edition after fire destroyed the News’ building the week before.

Despite some technical difficulties, including half of the paper’s copy being deleted Nov. 11 while the staff worked on older computers, the News went to The Ellsworth (Maine) American to be printed at 10 a.m. Nov. 12.

The building housing the News was destroyed in a fire Nov. 5.

"Everything is gone," Tenggren said in a story posted on the Maine Press Association Web site, mainepress.org. "The roof caved right in. We've got someone coming up from Goss to look over the printing press to see if anything can be salvaged from it. It's 40 years old, but it ran well."

Tenggren sought help to put out the News’ Nov. 12 edition.

"I could use some Mac computers, a large format laser printer and some furniture, for starters. Anything would be gratefully appreciated," Tenggren said in the mainepress.org story.

The News did receive donated computers and office equipment, such as chairs, Tenggren said Nov. 9.

Fire investigators are looking closely at a furnace in the back of the building that they think might have overheated and started the fire, Tenggren said. The furnace had shown problems in the week leading up to the fire, Tenggren said. He noticed that it was not putting out much hot air and the furnace had used $600 in fuel in just 17 days.

Tenggren said the News plans to rebuild, and that he was waiting for a go-ahead from an insurance company.

The building was reported to be a total loss, but some business records and computers might have survived.

No injuries were reported.

The fast-moving fire began about 6:30 p.m. Nov. 5, soon after that week’s edition had been published. Chris DeBeck, a News reporter, and its office manager, Laverne Carll, were last to leave the office, at 5:25 p.m., and there was no indication of any problem, the mainepress.org story reported.

When firefighters arrived, the building was engulfed in flames. The Lincoln fire chief said there was a water shortage when they first came to the scene. The cause of the fire is under investigation, and it appeared that it began inside the rear of the building, the chief, Phillip Dawson, said.

Tenggren has relocated to a vacant storefront, owned by the Lincoln Historical Society, next to the News building.

The News, which celebrated its 50th anniversary this year, recently opened a branch in Millinocket, Maine.

The weekly’s circulation is about 6,500.

                                                                                                                                         Photo courtesy of Bangor (Maine) Daily News
An inspector with the Maine state fire marshal's office stands amid debris from the fire that destroyed the office of the Lincoln (Maine) News Nov. 5 .

This report was written, in part from published reports, by Mary Catherine Adams, a graduate student at the Northeastern University School of Journalism and news staff coordinator for the Bulletin.

POSTED 11/15/09